If you or someone in your party need an interpreter
for deaf or hearing impaired, please email wecare@orami.org

No one is more welcome at Or Ami than you!

On Friday February 1, come to Congregation Or Ami for an incredible, unique Shabbat experience.

6:00 pm - Dinner (See prices below)
7:30 pm - Service (Free for all to attend)

As we celebrate the Jewish value of inclusion, come hear Sierra Meszaros (speaking on "Reflections on being a Jewish Woman of Color") and Carolyn Weiss (speaking on "Living My Dream: A Trans Woman's Journey"). Composer Daniel Cainer (Grateful) shares themed music. 

Access to Judaism for all people is a hallmark of Congregation Or Ami ("Light of Our People"). Chesed (lovingkindness), at its most basic level, demands that we reach out and draw in each person. We do this simultaneously on a communal level and on a personal level. At Or Ami we strive to create a culture, environment, and community where everybody feels comfortable and is able to participate fully as we are inclusive of people of all ages, genders, identities, sexual orientations, races, religious beliefs or ability to cope with life's challenges.

More info on our Special Guest Speakers: 

Sierra Meszaros
Reflections on being a Jewish Woman of Color

Sierra serves as the NFTY Central West Regional Advisor for URJ Camp Newman. Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, she has come to call the small Northern Nevada town of Genoa her new hometown. Sierra has long had a passion for the Jewish community which has manifested itself as a youth group member, later becoming a youth educator and TYG advisor. However, growing up Sierra struggled to find her place of belonging in the Jewish community, finding the tension over race and social status to be difficult to contend with. As the Jewish community continues to work to create space for all Jews in our communities to feel at home, Sierra is honored to share her story and perspectives on what it means to be a female Jew of color in today’s world, and how we continue to be allies in the struggle for equality and respect for all.

Carolyn Marie Weiss  
Reflections on a Journey to Womanhood

Carolyn was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. in 1954, and has lived in the Los Angeles area since 1959. She is a graduate of Cal State University, Northridge, and retired from a 32 year career with the City of Los Angeles in 2013. Carolyn began her journey to womanhood at the age of 55. At the time she had been married for 20 years and had a son. She came out to them in 2009, and in the spring of 2011, came out to her friends and over 400 colleagues as a transsexual woman. She was honored by the Los Angeles City Council in 2011 as an LGBT Pioneer. Carolyn served three years on the West Hollywood Transgender Advisory Board, owned a business consulting firm, and is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Gender Center, a non-profit therapy and psychologist training group.

----
Click here to receive our newsletters!